CemAir has been forced to halt operations after the South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) issued the carrier with an Air Operator Certificates (AOCs) prohibition order. The order is in place for a period of 24 hours, which lapses at 13h30 on Thursday, December 13, 2018.

The operator is required to submit proof of compliance before the expiry of the stated 24 hours, or to make a representation, and state reasons as to why its Air Operator Certificates should not be revoked.

SACAA said the decision to curtail CemAir’s AOCs privileges followed the raising of two, Level 1 findings against the operator by SACAA inspectors during an annual permit renewal audit.

“A Level 1 finding can be described as a severe non-compliance or non-conformance that poses a very serious safety risk to the public and necessitates immediate enforcement action by the SACAA and its authorised officers,” the authority said in a statement.